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Remote learning: how to support parents who are struggling
For parents with limited time or language skills, supporting their child’s remote learning can feel overwhelming. Find out how schools are helping them, and read our case study to learn how one school adapted its remote learning offer to suit the needs of its high proportion of families with EAL.
Contents
- Use videos to explain key concepts
- Help parents to understand any essential tech
- Invite parents to designated feedback sessions with their child
- Design a flexible timetable and clarify your priorities
- Reach out quickly and kindly if you have any concerns
- Clarify your turnaround times
- Ask for their input and respond transparently
- How one school adapted its remote learning offer to suit its families with English as an additional language (EAL)
We'd like to thank the 4 schools that contributed to this article - find out more about them at the bottom of this page.
Use videos to explain key concepts
Hayley Duffy, head of community at Denton Community College, advises that verbal explanations are much more appealing to parents with limited time or literacy than written ones.
See how the school has presented its written and verbal remote learning expectations on its website.
Staff at St Francis of Assisi Catholic Primary School record video explanations of key academic concepts using Loom, which is currently free for teachers. See more in the third section of this article about how they invite parents to get involved in their child’s learning once they’ve shared these.
Parents might struggle with their child’s remote learning because they don’t know how to access it, don’t understand the lesson, or both. At
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- How 4 primary schools are making excellent use of G Suite for Education or Office 365 Education
- How 4 secondary schools are making excellent use of G Suite for Education or Office 365 Education
- How to deliver live lessons to pupils learning from home and in school
- How to track the quality of your remote learning: strategies and templates
- Live lessons and 1-to-1 video calls: template risk assessment
- Mythbuster: 7 misconceptions about digital education platforms
- Office 365 Education: instructions for pupils, parents and staff
- Remote learning: alternative methods for providing laptops
- Remote learning: how 5 primary schools use formative assessment in live lessons
- Remote learning: how 5 secondary schools use formative assessment in live lessons
- Remote learning: how to deal with ‘over-supportive’ parents
- Remote learning: how to keep pupils with EAL on-track
- Remote learning: how to make the best use of small group sessions
- Remote learning: how to provide effective feedback
- Remote learning: how to provide opportunities for peer interaction
- Remote learning: how to support disadvantaged pupils
- Remote learning: how to support parents of pupils with SEND
- Remote learning: how to support pupils with SEND
- Remote learning: loaning IT equipment to pupils and staff
- Remote learning: monitoring pupil engagement
- Remote learning: programmes and webinars offering additional support
- Remote learning: self-evaluation form (SEF)
- Remote learning: strategies to tackle low engagement
- Staff briefing: how to design and deliver remote lessons
- Top tips for making blended learning more manageable
- Why every school should use a digital education platform
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